The receptionist knocked on Gu Xijue's office door.

"Mr. Gu, Miss Qiao has arrived. Is it convenient for her to come in now?"

A deep, gentle voice came from inside: "Come in."

The receptionist opened the door, smiled and gestured for Qiao Zhen to come in, then thoughtfully closed the door behind her.

Inside the office, Gu Xijue was working on documents at his desk.

His handsome face was covered with bruises, a testament to the brutality of his fight with Lu Zheng the day before.

Qiao Zhen was at a loss and stood there without moving.

"Zhenzhen, come and sit down."

Gu Xijue noticed Qiao Zhen's embarrassment, looked up and smiled as he invited her to sit down.

Qiao Zhen then walked over and sat on the sofa.

"Gu Xijue, I'm sorry about yesterday. I didn't expect Lu Zheng to lay a hand on you and even injure you."

Qiao Zhen herself didn't realize that when she said those words, she had completely tied herself to Lu Zheng.

Gu Xijue noticed this, and his delicate eyebrows twitched involuntarily.

“It’s okay, you don’t need to apologize. Lu Zheng’s actions were his personal reasons and have nothing to do with you. You don’t need to take his responsibility upon yourself.”

Qiao Zhen pursed her lips slightly, not responding to Gu Xijue's words.

"By the way, you didn't come here today just to apologize on Lu Zheng's behalf, did you?"

Gu Xijue cleverly changed the subject; he always knew how to speak in a way that would take the other person's feelings into account.

Sure enough, Qiao Zhen slowly shook her head.

"Of course not. Actually, I came here today to ask if you've recently made any moves against the Lu Group?"

Gu Xijue's expression changed almost imperceptibly, but he did not deny it.

"Yes, some necessary tactics in the business world."

At this point, Gu Xijue paused, his tone tinged with helplessness.

"As you know, I just returned to Jiangcheng from abroad. To gain a foothold here, I need to achieve something as soon as possible. I don't know if I offended Lu Zheng somehow, but ever since I came back, he has been targeting me in various ways. I was just retaliating passively."

Qiao Zhen listened quietly from the side.

She could tell that Lu Zheng was hostile towards Gu Xijue, but she didn't expect it to be this serious.

This made Qiao Zhen even more suspicious that she and Lu Zheng might have some kind of connection before.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know that."

Qiao Zhen smiled apologetically at Gu Xijue.

"I'm here today for no other reason than that our company recently launched a new project that I think is quite suitable, and I thought I'd come and see if you'd be interested."

After Qiao Zhen finished speaking, she took out a document from her bag and handed it to Gu Xijue.

Gu Xijue took it and began to read it carefully.

On the other side, after arranging things at the head office, Lu Zheng drove to Morning Star.

"Mr. Lu, this is our company's report for this quarter. Please take a look."

Morningstar's manager nervously handed the financial statements to Lu Zheng, fearing that Lu Zheng might fire him if he was dissatisfied.

Fortunately, Lu Zheng did not blame him.

He took the report, glanced at it briefly, and seemed completely distracted.

"Oh, right, go and call Qiao Zhen from the project department over here. I need to verify something with her."

The manager didn't dare delay and immediately complied.

After a while, the person who came with him was not Qiao Zhen, but the project department manager.

Where is Qiao Zhen?

Lu Zheng frowned slightly. At this time, Qiao Zhenli should have been at work.

Supervisor Chong Luzheng explained, "Qiao Zhen went out on fieldwork. There's a project today that she needs to handle."

It was perfectly normal for the project department to go out on fieldwork. But Lu Zheng felt a vague unease in his heart.

"Where did she go? Send me a copy of the other company's information."

The supervisor paused for a moment, then said in a deep voice, "She went to the Jazz Group."

"What?!"

Upon hearing the words "Jazz Group," Lu Zheng disregarded his image and slammed his hand on the table as he stood up.

"Why send her to liaise with the Jazz Group?"

One sentence instantly made the supervisor and manager lose their composure.

“President Lu, Qiao Zhen’s abilities are evident to everyone in the company. The cooperation with Jazz Group is extraordinary, so I will naturally assign my most trusted employee to it.”

The supervisor has worked diligently for so many years, and his thoughts are all for the company, so he is naturally not afraid of Lu Zheng making things difficult for him.

The manager, however, quickly assured him, "If Mr. Lu doesn't like it, I guarantee that Qiao Zhen will not be involved in any future collaborations with the Jazz Group. What do you think?"

Lu Zheng frowned.

He understood Qiao Zhen's personality and knew that she was strong-willed. If he were to take back the project from her, she would definitely be unwilling to accept it.

"Never mind, we'll talk about this later."

After Lu Zheng finished speaking, he left on his own.

He was not comfortable letting Qiao Zhen be alone with Gu Xijue.

Gu Xijue's feelings for Qiao Zhen are as clear as day, and he will never allow it!

The car sped along and arrived at the Jazz Group building.

Upstairs in his office, Gu Xijue finished reading the documents and his eyes showed approval.

"Zhenzhen, did you draft this document? The writing is good, the ideas flow smoothly, the clauses are clear, and this project does indeed make me a little interested."

Gu Xijue smiled gently at Qiao Zhen.

"However, as you know, my relationship with President Lu didn't go well. Zhenzhen, I've learned a bit about your situation. If you need anything, you can come to my company. Don't worry, I definitely won't treat you unfairly."

Gu Xijue extended an olive branch to Qiao Zhen.

Qiao Zhen knew that Gu Xijue meant well, but she felt a little resistant to such good intentions.

"No need, I quite like my current job. Besides, everyone is very nice to me, and I don't have any plans to change jobs for the time being."

Gu Xijue didn't force her.

"Alright, but remember, no matter what happens to you in the future, you can discuss it with me."

Qiao Zhen smiled and nodded, but she was a little confused.

When they were in school, she tried her best to win Gu Xijue's favor, but he remained aloof. Why is he suddenly taking the initiative to care about her now?

"Mr. Gu, thank you for your kindness. I will definitely not be polite to you if there is an opportunity in the future."

Gu Xijue was amused by Qiao Zhen's serious and methodical answer.

“We’re old classmates, it’s only right that we help each other out. Besides, you were so kind to me back then…”

At this point, Gu Xijue paused, his face full of regret.

"Over the years I've been abroad, I often think about my school days. If I hadn't been so focused on my studies back then, perhaps we wouldn't have missed each other."

As Gu Xijue spoke, he kept a close eye on Qiao Zhen's expression.

Seeing her frown, he immediately changed his tune, saying, "Never mind, it's all in the past, let's not talk about it anymore. Zhenzhen, it's getting late, let me treat you to lunch."

"Since Mr. Gu is going to such lengths, then I won't stand on ceremony."

Before Qiao Zhen could respond, the office door was pushed open forcefully, and Lu Zheng walked in.

"I'm sure Mr. Gu wouldn't mind having one more person, would he?"

Upon hearing Lu Zheng's voice, the hairs on the back of Qiao Zhen's neck instantly stood on end.